Department for Transport

West Midlands Trains: Trains

lord german: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many class 172 diesel trains operating on the Gospel Oak to Barking line have already been transferred to West Midlands Trains.

baroness sugg: Three of the Class 172 trains used on the Gospel Oak to Barking line have been transferred to their leaseholder, West Midlands Trains. The trains are currently undergoing modifications to allow them to run on the West Midlands Trains’ routes, including vital adaptations to install accessible toilets. The modification of these units will then be followed by a schedule of driver training.

West Midlands Trains: Trains

lord german: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the contract to transfer eight class 172 diesel trains from the Gospel Oak to Barking line to West Midlands Trains will be completed.

baroness sugg: West Midlands Trains (WMT) is the leaseholder of the Class 172 trains and is currently subleasing five of them to London Overground for Gospel Oak to Barking services. WMT will be calling trains back from this sublease to allow for the required modifications and driver training prior to entry into service in May 2019.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Cycleways

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated capital cost of adding a cycleway to the route of HS2 Phase 1.

baroness sugg: The Department has not undertaken an estimate of the capital cost of adding a cycleway along the entire route of HS2 Phase One. The Department published a national cycleway feasibility study associated with HS2 on the 18th October 2018 which identified a range of possible cycling routes and networks near to and around the route of HS2.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Sea Level

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessment they have made of the predicted global rise in sea levels as a result of the increase in Antarctic ice loss in the past four decades; and what steps they are taking, with international partners, in response to that issue.

lord henley: The UK Climate Projections (UKCP18), published in November 2018 by the UK government-funded Met Office Hadley Centre (MOHC), projected a global sea level rise of 29 – 112 cm by 2100, relative to the 1981-2000 average, depending on the scale of future emissions of greenhouse gases. Under a medium emissions scenario, the UKCP18 sea level projections show a net contribution from Antarctica of up to 26 cm by 2100.The UK Government is committed to tackling climate change and is actively working with others to meet the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement. This includes:demonstrating leadership by taking action to reduce our own emissions (we have reduced UK emissions by over 40% compared to 1990 levels);taking a prominent leadership role in multilateral fora such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, G20, G7;providing International Climate Finance (at least £5.8bn from 2016/17-2020/21) to help developing countries mitigate and adapt to climate change; andpromoting global alliances to encourage clean growth, such as the Powering Past Coal Alliance.Through organisations, such as the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) – a part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the UK is delivering world-leading interdisciplinary research to better understand environmental changes in the polar regions and its impacts. This is often in collaboration with international partners – for example, the £20 million over 5 years UK-US International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration to understand its ice sheet stability and potential impact on global sea-level rise. This and similar projects enable us to better adapt to and mitigate against global climate change.

Nuclear Power

lord campbell-savours: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with a consortium comprising of Rolls-Royce, Arup and Laing O'Rourke regarding support for the development of small modular nuclear reactors.

lord henley: We are considering a proposal from a UK Consortium into Wave 3 of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund that could result in a significant joint investment.

Electricity Generation

lord haworth: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have for meeting the UK's future energy needs following the recent cancellations of plans to build new nuclear power stations in Cumbria and Wales.

lord henley: The Wylfa and Moorside projects were not due to be operational until the late 2020s, and there are a range of options for replacing this capacity over that time-frame. National Grid have said that there will be no issue with future security of supply as a result of these announcements, and that there is time for the market to react. Last year we procured over 3GW of offshore wind in a single Contract for Difference auction – at a price of £57.50 per megawatt hour. Both Wylfa and Moorside remain potential sites for nuclear new build under the current National Policy Statement, and myself and BEIS officials remain willing to meet with any viable proponents wishing to develop these sites. My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State will set out a new approach to financing new nuclear in the planned energy White Paper in the summer.

Viagogo

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they intend to take against Viagogoas a result of that company’s failure to overhaul its business practices in relation to secondary ticket sales, following the court order of 27 November 2018.

lord henley: The Government put in place the legislation that led to the Court Order against Viagogo.Compliance with the order and any necessary enforcement action is a matter for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and the court itself.The CMA has now raised a number of concerns with Viagogo and has said that it expects Viagogo to make any necessary changes without delay. If Viagogo fails to do so, the CMA has said that it will return to court to ensure they make these changes.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Anguilla: Overseas Aid

lord howell of guildford: To ask Her Majesty's Government what development funding they intend to provide to Anguilla after 2020 to substitute for the support currently provided by the European Development Fund.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Future funding and programming arrangements for the Overseas Territories post-2020 will be considered as part of the next Spending Review which is expected to take place in 2019. When reviewing future options careful consideration will be given to any loss of European Union funding the Overseas Territories may experience as a result of the UK leaving the European Union. Any future funding arrangements will need to demonstrate value for money and adopt a consistent approach across all government departments that manage such funds. No decisions have yet been taken on this matter.

North Korea: British Council

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the British Council on restarting its English language teaching programme in North Korea; and whether they intend to provide funding to restart that programme.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Council English Language Training Programme was suspended in August 2017 when the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) changed its Travel Advice for North Korea to advise against all but essential travel. Over its lifetime the programme provided training to hundreds of teachers and tuition to 4,500 students, exposing North Korean teachers and students to alternative views of the outside world. There have been no substantive discussions between the FCO and British Council on restarting the programme.

Amoon and Qaisar Ayub

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have discussed the case of Qaisar and Amoon Ayub with (1) the government of Thailand, and (2) the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees;if so, when any such discussions took place; and if not, why not.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK encourages all states to honour in full their international human rights obligations. We routinely raise concerns about freedom of religion or belief and the treatment of minority religious communities with our international partners.We have raised our concerns with the Government of Thailand over the detention of foreign nationals seeking refugee status, including nationals of Pakistan. I discussed our concerns in a telephone call with the Thai Ambassador on 2 November 2018. We have repeatedly urged Thailand to sign the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees, and closely followed the detention of approximately 100 people, mainly from Pakistan, in October 2018. We believe these actions are not aimed at any specific group or groups, but apply to anyone whom they deem an illegal visa over-stayer. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees are working closely with the Royal Thai Government over asylum and resettlement issues. ​

Pervaiz Masih

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case of Pervais Masih, accused of blasphemy in Pakistan, the treatment of his family and the death of his daughter; and whether they have discussed this case with the government of Pakistan.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are concerned by the distressing reports surrounding the case of Pervaiz Masih, accused of blasphemy in Pakistan and the treatment of his family and death of his daughter.We remain deeply concerned by the misuse of the blasphemy laws and the treatment of minority religious communities in Pakistan. We regularly raise our concerns about the misuse of the blasphemy laws and the protection of minority communities with the government of Pakistan at a senior level. I raised our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of minority religious communities with Pakistan’s Human Rights Minister in September 2018. At the UN Universal Periodic Review of Pakistan in November 2017, the UK pressed Pakistan to strengthen the protection of minorities and to explain the steps being taken to tackle the abuse of the blasphemy laws.To ensure the United Kingdom is supporting Christians in the best possible way, the Foreign Secretary has commissioned an independent, global review into the additional practical steps the government can take to support persecuted Christians. The Review will be led by the Bishop of Truro, Rt Revd. Philip Mounstephen, and will make an initial report around Easter.

Philippines: Bombings

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the bombing of the Jolo CatholicCathedral in the Philippines; who they believe was responsible; and what assistance theyhave offered to the government of the Philippines.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Government completely condemns the appalling bomb attacks on the Catholic Cathedral on the island of Jolo in the Philippines on Sunday 27 January. Our prayers are with all the victims and their loved ones. The UK stands with the Philippines against terror and hatred.Churches and all places of religious worship are sites for peace and reflection. This horrific terrorist act goes against the very essence of this.The Islamic State (IS) have claimed responsibility for the attack, however in a public statement during his visit to Jolo Island on 28 January President Duterte stated he believed Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) was behind the attack.The UK works with the Philippines on a range of bilateral priorities including on counter terrorism.​

Tunisia: Travel Information

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, for assisting economic recovery in Tunisia; what is their current travel advice for visitors to that country; and whether they consider that towns and cities in the interior of Tunisia are now safer than previously.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are increasing our support, both to help build Tunisia's capacity to deal with the terrorist threat and to help the country develop its economy, through the North Africa Good Governance Fund. UK support for Tunisia has more than doubled since 2014-15, and this coming financial year will exceed £12 million.On 26 July 2017 we changed our travel advice for Tunisia and no longer advise against all but essential travel for most of the country, including the interior of Tunisia. However, we continue to advise against all travel to areas such as the closed military zones in the south and west of the country, and the Libyan border. This does not mean that there are no risks to British nationals visiting other parts of Tunisia. Anyone considering travel to Tunisia should consult the relevant Foreign and Commonwealth Office Travel Advice, which has further information including on the security situation.

Saudi Arabia: Females

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will call for a independent investigation into allegations that Loujain al-Hathloul, together with other women, was subjected to torture during recent periods under arrest in Saudi Arabia.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Government is very concerned about the allegations that women's rights activists have been subject to torture during pre-trial detention in Saudi Arabia. We have raised concerns a number of times about these cases at Ministerial level with the Saudi authorities and will do so again. We consistently and unreservedly condemn torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. We raise our concerns wherever and whenever it occurs.​

Persecution of Christians across the Globe Independent Review

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government why their review into the persecution of Christians does not include within its scope the effect of DfID and Home Office policies on aid and asylum.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: This review was commissioned by the Foreign Secretary and will map levels of persecution of Christians in key countries around the world. It will also provide an objective assessment of the impact and levels of Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) support and make recommendations in this regard. The Review was commissioned by the Foreign Secretary into the work of the FCO, so it would be inappropriate to make findings and/or recommendations to other departments. Other public authorities may wish to take note of the points of learning. The Review will be presented to the Foreign Secretary.

Persecution of Christians across the Globe Independent Review

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the full terms of reference for their review into the persecution of Christians will be published.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office attaches great importance to this independent global review into the persecution of Christians, which was launched on 30 January. The Terms of Reference for the review are in the process of being finalised with the independent reviewer, the Bishop of Truro. They will be published once agreed. We will ensure that the Bishop of Truro is well supported and has the resources needed to conduct the review.

Persecution of Christians across the Globe Independent Review

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government when it is expected that their review into the persecution of Christians will publish its findings and recommendations.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: ​The first phase of the review, an assessment and analysis of existing evidence, will conclude with an initial report to the Foreign Secretary in April 2019. The second phase, which will assess the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's current and recent response, will report to the Foreign Secretary by 28 June 2019, making policy and operational recommendations.

China: British Nationals Abroad

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice they provideto (1) business travellers, and (2) those engaged in academic and political research, visiting China,following the recent detentions of Australian and Canadian citizens and concerns over Chinese hostage diplomacy.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: ​The Foreign and Commonwealth Office provides travel advice for all British nationals travelling to and living in China, including business travellers and those visiting for research purposes. Our travel advice covers a range of topics, including matters of safety and security and local laws. We keep our travel advice under constant review and make regular updates to ensure it reflects our assessment of risk to British nationals and includes information and advice on the most relevant issues.

Jamal Khashoggi

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the governments of Turkey and Saudi Arabia about the progress of investigations into the death of Jamal Khashoggi on 2 October 2018; what assessment they have made of the statement by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights that the criminal trial in Saudi Arabia of individuals suspected of being involved in his killing does not meet the requirements of an independent and international probe; andwhat assessment they have made of the level of co-operation by the governments of Turkey and Saudi Arabia to datewith the UN independent inquiry which has been set up to establish the nature and extent of states’ and individuals’ responsibilities for the killing.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The case of Jamal Khashoggi remains deeply concerning. Both the Minister for Europe and the Americas, Sir Alan Duncan, and the Foreign Secretary, have had regular discussions with our Turkish Counterparts since Mr Khashoggi's death. In addition both the Foreign Secretary and the Prime Minister have raised the issue with the Saudi authorities, including directly with King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.The UK strongly supports the Turkish investigation into the incident and has been urging Saudi Arabia to cooperate fully. We have stressed the importance of ensuring that those responsible are held to account, and that Saudi Arabia takes action to build confidence that such a deplorable incident will never happen again. We will continue to engage with Turkey and Saudi Arabia until the investigation reaches a through and just conclusion.The British Government is aware of the investigation by the UN Special Rapporteur, Agnes Callamard, and will consider the report closely ahead of the UN Human Rights Council.

Sri Lanka: Armed Conflict

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they calculated the number of civilians killed between 1 January and 18 May 2009 in the war between the Sri Lankan armed forced forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the authors of the Report of the Secretary-General’s Panel of Experts on accountability in Sri Lanka, published on 31 March 2011, met their High Commissioner in Sri Lanka.

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the range and accuracy of the sources used to determine the United Nation’s estimate that 40,000 civilians were killed between 1 January and 18 May 2009 in the war between the Sri Lankan armed forced forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they now have any revised estimate of the number of civilians killed between 1 January and 18 May 2009 in the war between the Sri Lankan armed forced forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, since the Report of the Secretary-General’s Panel of Experts on accountability in Sri Lanka, published on 31 March 2011, was published.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The United Kingdom co-sponsored the 2014 UN Human Rights Council resolution, which established an investigation into allegations of serious violations and abuses of human rights during the conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. We welcomed the publication of the report in September 2015. British officials were in regular contact with the UN throughout this period. The report concluded that there were reasonable grounds to believe that gross violations of international human rights law, serious violations of international humanitarian law, and international crimes were committed by all parties. Although different reports have given different figures for the total number of deaths, the fact that many thousands died during the final stage of the conflict is not in dispute.It is for the Government of Sri Lanka to determine the final casualty figures through a comprehensive independent truth seeking commission, as they have undertaken to do. The commitments that Sri Lanka made to the UN Human Rights Council in October 2015, and again in March 2017, are the best way to establish the truth, and to achieve justice, restitution, and lasting reconciliation.

Department of Health and Social Care

NHS: Crimes of Violence

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many assaults by mental health patients on NHS staff were reported in each of the last five years for which records are available.

baroness blackwood of north oxford: The number of assaults by mental health patients on National Health Service staff reported in each of the last five years is not available in the format requested. However, the following table shows the number of physical assaults where the perpetrator did not know what they were doing, or did not know what they were doing was wrong due to medical illness, mental ill health, severe learning disabilities or treatment administration from 2011/12 to 2015/16. 2015/1652,7042014/1551,3722013/1453,4842012/1348,4692011/1246,265 Physical assaults data has not been collected centrally since 2015/16. On 31 October 2018, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced a new NHS National Violence Reduction strategy which will include a new central physical assaults data collection. These data will help NHS organisations benchmark their progress in protecting their staff against physical assaults and support the spread of good practice.

Drugs: Shortages

lord hunt of chesterton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice they are providing to (1) UK residents, and (2) medical organisations about how to access medicines from the EU in the UK.

baroness blackwood of north oxford: It is a priority of the Department to ensure patients continue to have access to medicines as we leave the European Union, in all exit scenarios.While a Withdrawal Agreement has been agreed between Government and the European Commission, as a responsible Government, we continue to prepare proportionately for all scenarios, including the outcome that we leave the European Union without a deal in March 2019.The Department has issued guidance on 7 December 2018 to all National Health Service trusts, pharmacies and general practices informing them of our plans for ensuring continuity of supply of medicines and advising them that they can expect to be able to continue accessing medicines through their existing supply routes in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit on 29 March 2019. This guidance explained how hospitals, general practitioners and community pharmacies throughout the UK do not need to take any steps to stockpile additional medicines, beyond their business as usual stock levels. There is also no need for clinicians to write longer NHS prescriptions. A copy of the Department’s letter of 7 December to the NHS in England is attached.NHS England and the devolved administrations have also communicated similar messages to the front line and patients have also been advised not to stockpile medicines. Unnecessary local stockpiling would increase pressure on the medicines supply chain and could lead to avoidable shortages and subsequent risks to patients.



7 December letter to the NHS
(PDF Document, 396.54 KB)

Obesity

baroness redfern: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are considering taking steps to reduce differences in levels of obesity between more and less deprived areas; and if so, what steps.

baroness blackwood of north oxford: In Childhood obesity: a plan for action, chapter 2, published in June 2018, we have set a bold ambition to halve childhood obesity by 2030 and significantly reduce the gap in obesity between children from the most and least deprived areas by 2030. We want to achieve this by ensuring that we are supporting parents, particularly in the most deprived families, to help their children have the best start in life. We have reiterated this ambition in our vision document Prevention is better than cure, published on 5 November 2018, and in the NHS Long Term Plan published on 8 January 2019. The childhood obesity plan delivers school based interventions including revenue from the soft drinks industry levy being invested in programmes targeted at disadvantaged children including up to £26 million to fund a breakfast club programme between 2017-18 and 2019-20 and £22 million in an Essential Life Skills programme in 12 Opportunity Areas to enable disadvantaged children aged 5-18 to participate in regular extra-curricular activities, including sporting activities, to develop essential life skills. Through the Healthy Food Schemes, the Government provides a nutritional safety net to those who need it the most. The three schemes that make up this programme, Healthy Start, Nursery Milk and School Fruit and Vegetables, help to support children, babies and women through pregnancy, when they are at home, in childcare and in early years at school.

HIV Infection: Preventive Medicine

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend access to the Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis pill.

baroness blackwood of north oxford: On 30 January, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced that the Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Impact trial would be expanded to 26,000 people. Work is underway with partners to take this forward. The PrEP Oversight Board has requested information on local capacity to make the additional places available, and will review this later in February.

Health Services and Social Services: Migrant Workers

lord stunell: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of new workers required to replace workers from other EU countries who may leave the health and social care sector following the UK's withdrawal from the EU; and what measures they are putting in place to ensure that sufficient numbers are recruited and trained.

baroness blackwood of north oxford: The Department’s priority is to ensure that the 167,000 European Union staff currently working in the health and social care sectors are not only able to stay, but feel welcomed and encouraged to stay in the United Kingdom.As part of this work, the public testing phase of the EU Settlement Scheme opened on 21 January 2019. Following the Prime Minister’s announcement on 21 January 2019, from 30 March 2019 onwards, EU nationals will not have to pay a charge to make an application. Any application made before that date, including those that have already been made, will be reimbursed.We have also introduced a range of measures to support increased recruitment and retention across the health and care system, including national recruitment campaigns that illustrate the diverse and fulfilling career opportunities available in the National Health Service and social care.

Postnatal Care

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether contraception advice is provided in postnatal care; and if so, what consideration they give as to when to provide such advice.

baroness blackwood of north oxford: The National Health Service advises women of the importance of using some form of contraception during sex after giving birth, including the first time, if they do not wish to become pregnant. Women will usually have had a chance to discuss contraception before leaving hospital after birth, and again at their postnatal check at six-eight weeks. They can also talk about contraception with their general practitioner or health visitor, or go to a family planning or local contraception clinic, at any time, including whilst still pregnant.National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance for postnatal care specifically recommends that methods and timing of resumption of contraception should be discussed within the first week of the birth. The coordinating healthcare professional should provide proactive assistance to women who may have difficulty accessing contraceptive care. This includes providing contact details for expert contraceptive advice.

Department for Education

Foster Care: Asylum

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress has been made in assessing offers to act as foster parents for incoming unaccompanied children; and what steps are being taken to link Community Sponsorship groups with approved fosterers of unaccompanied children.

lord agnew of oulton: The government recognises the vital role of foster carers in looking after unaccompanied children. Any prospective foster carer must be assessed and approved by an Ofsted registered fostering agency or local authority. The government’s Controlling Migration Fund has provided over £3.7 million funding to 15 local authorities who asked for funding to recruit and train foster carers for unaccompanied asylum seeking children. The Department for Education has also commissioned training places for 1000 foster carers of unaccompanied children.As the community sponsorship scheme is designed to enable local community groups to directly welcome and support resettled refugee families and not unaccompanied children under the Vulnerable Persons and Children’s Resettlement schemes, no link to approved foster carers of unaccompanied children has been made by central government.

Pre-school Education

lord porter of spalding: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the sustainability of maintained nursery schools; and what assessment they have made of any additional costs faced bythose nurseriesas a result of the additional statutory responsibilities placed on them when compared to other early years settings.

lord agnew of oulton: Maintained nursery schools (MNS) make a valuable contribution to improving the lives of some of our most disadvantaged children. They experience costs that other providers do not, and we are providing local authorities with around £60 million a year in supplementary funding to enable them to protect MNS funding.This arrangement is due to end in March 2020, and what happens after that will be determined by the next Spending Review. Owing to uncertainty over the exact date of the Spending Review, we are considering how best to handle transitional arrangements for a number of areas, including MNS.To ensure that decisions are evidence-based, we have commissioned research to explore in detail the costs that MNS experience. That research will be published soon.

The Senior Deputy Speaker

Parliamentary Estate: Proof of Identity

viscount waverley: To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker what consideration has been given to requiring all visitors to the Parliamentary estate topresent photo identification before entry.

lord mcfall of alcluith: There are over one million visitors to Parliament each year. Visitors access the estate for many reasons. These include: to meet with a Member or a member of staff; to attend a Member-sponsored meeting or meetings at official level; to give evidence to a Committee; to lobby; to attend debates in both Houses (in the Chambers and Committees); to attend functions and banqueting events; to take a tour (both paid-for and democratic free tours); or as part of an Education Service visit. Many visits do not need to be pre-booked. In order to promote open access to Parliament controls are kept proportionate to the security risk. Photo identification by visitors is not currently deemed proportionate and if introduced would need to be verified, significantly delaying the admission of visitors to Parliament and resulting in lengthy queues at peak times.All non-passholders are subject to search and screening measures before entering the estate. The Parliamentary Security Department do not comment publicly on the details of security measures.The Director of Security for Parliament is content to meet with any members who wish to discuss specific concerns.

Ministry of Defence

Armed Forces: Casualties

lord foulkes of cumnock: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many deaths of serving on-duty military personnel have occurred in Scotland since 1990; and what investigations the Ministry of Defence hasconductedinto such deaths.

earl howe: From 1 January 1990 to 27 January 2019, 98 UK Armed Forces personnel have died whilst on duty in Scotland. A detailed breakdown of the causes of UK Armed Forces Deaths whilst on duty in Scotland by Service and Cause of Death from 1 January 1990 to 27 January 2019 is shown in the attached table. The investigation of deaths, whether they are military or civilian lies with the Scottish Government and the Crown Office of the Procurator Fiscal/Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit. The decision to conduct Fatal Accident Investigations is for the Crown Office of the Procurator Fiscal in conjunction with the Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit. The Ministry of Defence will always support the Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit in its investigations in an open and honest manner. An internal Ministry of Defence investigation is carried out following any death, very serious injury or serious injury of a Service Person, including natural causes whether they are on or off duty. The internal investigation includes an overview of the event, what happened, to whom, when and why. These accounts are conducted expeditiously after the event (within five days if possible) and are designed to be a swift capture of the events and aimed to identify any immediate lessons that may have been found. The internal investigations also present recommendations to prevent any recurrence of a similar incident where possible. These investigations are always shared with the Crown Office/Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit. 



UK Armed Forces Deaths whilst on duty in Scotland
(Word Document, 25.27 KB)

Cyprus: EOKA

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the average compensation paid to the families of British servicemen killed by EOKA; whether the government of Greece has paid any compensation to those families; and what assessment they have made of the government of Greece’ssupport for EOKA.

earl howe: The families of British Service personnel killed by EOKA will have received payments in accordance with the rules of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme and the War Pension Scheme in force at the time. This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. We are not aware that the government of Greece made any such payments to those families. Her Majesty's Government’s focus is now upon a forward looking and positive relationship with an important partner for the UK in eastern Mediterranean security. The UK and Greece work closely together across a range of issues, including irregular migration and tackling organised immigration crime.

Cyprus: EOKA

lord maginnis of drumglass: To ask Her Majesty's Government on what basis they have paid £1 million in compensation to 33 former members of EOKA; on whose authority such a payment was made; and what assessment they have made of the impact of that compensation payment on the families of the British servicemen killed by EOKA.

earl howe: The Ministry of Defence and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, without admission of liability, have settled the claims in order to draw a line under this litigation, to avoid the further escalation of costs, which would ultimately be borne by the taxpayer, and focus on future relations with Cyprus. This course of action was authorised by Ministers in both Departments. Her Majesty’s Government reaffirms its highest respect for the memory and sacrifice of British and Cypriot Service personnel and employees of the Crown who gave their lives, who lost family members or loved ones, or whose lives suffered permanent disruption as a result of the Emergency.

Middle East: Military Intervention

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government why they are reducing the RAF air fleet in Iraq and North-East Syria.

earl howe: The Tornado will retire, as planned, in March 2019 after a long and illustrious contribution to British combat air power. A full range of ground attack capabilities have now been integrated onto the Typhoon aircraft under Project Centurion. Consequently, Tornado has been withdrawn from Operation Shader, handing over operations to Typhoon, with no reduction in the capability or effectiveness of the RAF's contribution to the Global Coalition against Daesh. As counter-Daesh operations evolve, we will keep our operational capability to meet the threat under review.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Air Pollution: Urban Areas

lord jones of cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice and assistance they provide to local authorities on tackling air pollution in urban areas in order to tackle increases in the levels of asthma and other breathing difficulties.

lord gardiner of kimble: We know that air quality is a threat to public health and that more needs to be done to improve air quality. Earlier this month the Government published the Clean Air Strategy which addresses broader emissions and aims to cut air pollution and save lives. The Strategy includes new and ambitious goals, legislation and policies which will help us to clean up our air faster and more effectively. The World Health Organisation has praised our Clean Air Strategy as ‘an example for the rest of the world to follow’ The Government has made available almost £500 million to help local authorities develop and implement local air quality plans. Defra’s Air Quality Grant Programme provides funding to local authorities for projects in local communities to tackle air pollution and reduce emissions. The scheme has awarded over £57 million in funding to a variety of projects since it started in 1997.The 2019 scheme is underway and Defra will award at least £3 million to English local authorities that have one or more Air Quality Management Area. Defra has worked jointly with Public Health England and the Association of Directors of Public Health to develop a series of outreach events aimed at Directors of Public Health to inform local decision making, and enable local authorities to lead, and improve air quality more effectively. In March 2017 Defra and Public Health England jointly issued a briefing to Directors of Public Health outlining the important role Directors of Public Health can play in helping to improve air quality. We will bring forward provisions on air quality in 2019 and this will include an up to date legislative framework for tackling air pollution at national and local level, tying this into the development of the new environmental principles and governance framework to be outlined in the Environment Bill. Under the new Environment Bill we are considering what changes can be made to the Clean Air Act to enable Local Authorities to go further in areas of high pollution and make further improvement to local air quality. Local authorities have statutory duties to review and assess local air quality and to take action to clean up air if improvements are necessary. Defra provides guidance and support to local authorities so that they can meet their statutory duties under the Environment Act 1995.

Common Land

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Gardiner of Kimble on 31 January (HL13131), which village greens were approved (1) in full, and (2) in part; and whether the figures provided include town greens.

lord gardiner of kimble: Three village green applications have been approved in full as of 31 January: Woburn in Cornwall (2013)Benslow Field in Hitchin, Hertfordshire (2013)Eastern Fields in Devon (2016) One village green application has been approved in part: Moorside Fields, Lancashire (2015). We do not record town green applications separately from village green applications because there is no substantive distinction in law between the two (section 15 Commons Act 2006).

Department for International Trade

UK Trade with EU

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to work with businesses based in other European countries to minimise disruption to supply chains in the event of a disorderly Brexit.

baroness fairhead: In December 2018 the Government agreed to ramp up its no deal preparations. In line with this, the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) teams in Europe have increased their preparations for a no deal exit from the EU and have recommended that businesses enact their own no deal plans to ensure they are similarly prepared. DIT is also engaged with national and local governments, port authorities and other key stakeholders in Europe to minimise any disruption to supply chains. More widely, the DIT teams in Europe have been reassuring European businesses that the UK remains open for business; that we remain an advocate for free trade and open markets; and that the UK will continue to be an important trading partner for European businesses after we leave the EU. DIT teams have also been working with Governments, businesses, trade associations and other business service providers to ensure that European businesses prepare for the UK’s exit from the European Union so they can continue to play an important part in UK supply chains.

Women and Equalities

Civil Partnerships

lord lexden: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 18 January (HL Deb, col 453), when the details of their consultation exercise on civil partnerships will be announced.

baroness williams of trafford: Our consultation on civil partnerships will issue later this year. It will relate to issues concerning opposite-sex civil partnerships for intimate partners.